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A Massachusetts Yeoman Opposes the "Aristocratickal" Constitution
The ratification of the United States Constitution was the subject of intense discussion, debate, and dissent during the period 1787-1789. This letter gives a sense of the opposition of many Anti-Federalists to what they perceived as the [...]
Massachusetts Anti-Federalists Take a Skeptical View of Federal Power
The ratification of the United States Constitution was the subject of intense discussion, debate, and dissent during the period 1787-1789. Democracy was yet a largely untried experiment, and those who pondered what form the new constitution should [...]
A Son of Liberty Lists His Objections to the New Constitution
After delegates to the constitutional convention in Philadelphia finished their work and adopted the U.S. Constitution in September, 1787, it remained for the states to ratify it. Vigorous debates took place in all of the thirteen states. This [...]
A Delegate to the Massachusetts Constitutional Convention Fears for the Little People
The ratification of the United States Constitution was the subject of intense discussion, debate, and dissent during the period 1787-1789. Though ultimately ratified by all thirteen states, the decision was by no means unanimous, and ratification [...]
A Virginia Patriot Speaks Out Against Ratification of the Constitution
Patrick Henry was a Virginia patriot best known for his "Give me liberty or give me death!" speech on the eve of the Revolutionary War. He was also known as one of the most radical advocates of republican government. In this speech before the [...]
A Virginian Argues for a Bill of Rights at the Ratification Convention
Patrick Henry, the Virginia patriot best known for his "Give me liberty or give me death!" speech, was also one of the leading Anti-Federalists. In this excerpt from a speech before the Virginia Ratification Convention, he makes the case for an [...]
A Massachusetts Farmer Favors the New Constitution
The ratification of the United States Constitution was the subject of intense discussion, debate, and dissent between 1787 and 1789. Though ultimately ratified by all thirteen states, the decision was contentious and ratification faced considerable [...]
A Radical Patriot Urges "Common Sense and a Plain Understanding" in the Pennsylvania Constitution (with text supports)
In 1776 Pennsylvania organized a convention to write a new state constitution. James Cannon, a radical patriot leader, advised Pennsylvania militia members to be sure to select delegates to this convention who would respect the rights and authority [...]
Massachusetts Anti-Federalists Oppose the Three-Fifths Compromise
The ratification of the United States Constitution was the subject of intense debate between 1787 and 1789. One particularly controversial issue was the Three Fifths Compromise, which settled how enslaved people would be counted for purposes of [...]
A Fight Breaks Out Among Early Congressmen
The early Congress was an occasionally volatile experiment in Democracy, as this somewhat crude 1798 cartoon demonstrates. On February 15 of that year, an insult uttered by Rep. Roger Griswold of Connecticut directed to Rep. Matthew Lyon of Vermont [...]